linux-kernel - RE: [PATCH] Drivers: hv: vmbus: Add mutex lock to channel show functions

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Date:   Fri, 1 Feb 2019 18:24:24 +0000
From:   Dexuan Cui <decui@...rosoft.com>
To:     kimbrownkd <kimbrownkd@...il.com>,
        Michael Kelley <mikelley@...rosoft.com>
CC:     Sasha Levin <sashal@...nel.org>, Long Li <longli@...rosoft.com>,
        Sasha Levin <Alexander.Levin@...rosoft.com>,
        Stephen Hemminger <sthemmin@...rosoft.com>,
        KY Srinivasan <kys@...rosoft.com>,
        Haiyang Zhang <haiyangz@...rosoft.com>,
        "devel@...uxdriverproject.org" <devel@...uxdriverproject.org>,
        "linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org" <linux-kernel@...r.kernel.org>
Subject: RE: [PATCH] Drivers: hv: vmbus: Add mutex lock to channel show
 functions

> From: Kimberly Brown <kimbrownkd@...il.com>
> Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2019 9:47 AM
> ...
> 2) Prevent a deadlock that can occur between the proposed mutex_lock()
> call in the vmbus_chan_attr_show() function and the sysfs/kernfs functions.
Hi Kim,
Can you please share more details about the deadlock? 
It's unclear to me how the deadlock happens.

> I've identified two possible solutions to the deadlock:
> 
> 1) Add a new mutex to the vmbus_channel struct which protects changes to
> "channel->state". Use this new mutex in vmbus_chan_attr_show() instead of
> "vmbus_connection.channel_mutex".
> 
> 2) Use "vmbus_connection.channel_mutex" in vmbus_chan_attr_show() as
> originally proposed, and acquire it with mutex_trylock(). If the mutex
> cannot be acquired, return -EINVAL.
It looks more like a workaround. IMO we should try to find a real fix. :-)
 
> I'm leaning towards (2), using mutex_trylock().
> "vmbus_connection.channel_mutex"
> appears to be used only when a channel is being opened or closed, so
> vmbus_chan_attr_show() should be able to acquire the mutex when the
> channel is in use.
> 
> If anyone has suggestions, please let me know.
> 
> Thanks,
> Kim

Thanks,
-- Dexuan